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Hi, I am from Melbourne, interested in geopolitics in general, have been called a leftist/a rightist (and a whole range of other names but we won't go into that lol), therefore, let us just consider me a moderate or perhaps simply all over the place.

I'll confess to;

Not care for these (left/right) labels in particular, I like to explore each topic within its own environment.. also sometimes to maintain a distance, focus on the consequences and reasons behind an event taking priority over choosing sides (which probably explains why I'm all the place).

Also, I do not particularly enjoy an opinion forced onto me, however, if you put forward a well-considered argument I am quite happy to come into the light... that's why I'm here, to challenge my own thoughts and ideas.

I look forward to exploring new ideas and opinions on the forum.
Aquila

Hi, I am from Melbourne, interested in geopolitics in general, have been called a leftist/a rightist (and a whole range of other names but we won't go into that lol), therefore, let us just consider me a moderate or perhaps simply all over the place.

I'll confess to;

Not care for these (left/right) labels in particular, I like to explore each topic within its own environment.. also sometimes to maintain a distance, focus on the consequences and reasons behind an event taking priority over choosing sides (which probably explains why I'm all the place).

Also, I do not particularly enjoy an opinion forced onto me, however, if you put forward a well-considered argument I am quite happy to come into the light... that's why I'm here, to challenge my own thoughts and ideas.

I look forward to exploring new ideas and opinions on the forum.
Aquila

Welcome!

I highly recommend you go to this link and check out a handy dandy users guide for the WAB compiled by a longtime member. It will help you have a productive time on the WAB.

Also, I hope you understand we have some folks with some strong opinions on the WAB. They will make their opinions forcefully but don't take it as someone who is trying to foist their ideas onto you.

AR

Thank you, looking at zraver’s guide I clearly fumbled my first intro attempt, I will try this again, using some of his advice.

Introduce yourself. "Hi, I’m Johnny from Queensland" might count, but tell us about you. What makes you tick, what you are passionate about, have you worn a uniform or otherwise served your country. These types of things help us get to know you, and in some cases vet you.
If you have served in or worked in the defense, military or Foreign Service establishment tell us, and details count. You might find someone here you knew, who knows you or knows enough of the details to support what you say that you get awarded the blue name given to Military/Defense and Foreign Service Professionals.

I am a rather private person therefore unlikely to spill much in my intro, however will share that I am a wife and mother of two (14 & 12, boy and girl). I have never served in the military nor have I ever had any interest in doing so, the shoes are far too ugly. This is merely a hobby for me, in the same way people build puzzles… I like to unravel them.

Prepare to get some abuse. This site deals with topics that have a lot of emotional energy. While WAB is generally civil, tempers do flare. We won’t normally tell you to eat a gun or otherwise go beyond the pale, but you might get called a variety of names. This comes with a Catch-22, if a poster with 4000 posts says you're, “too stupid to breathe”, they probably will not get banned. You fire back a similar insult and you probably will. While post count alone does not make one an expert, most of the prolific posters are at least journeymen levels in one field or another and have earned a bit of leeway. On WAB there is no equal protection clause. Stick around and earn your place and the same unfairness you dislike as a newcomer will save your butt as an old timer caught up in an emotional issue.

Yes this is unfortunate but I accept it as part of being here. I am not argumentative by nature but am however a bit stubborn and therefore will likely push back if I think it’s worth the time and effort to justify the useless backward and forward slinging of insults. I much prefer insults when they come with information I did not have prior to the incident.

Don’t piss off Officer of Engineers, otherwise known as the Colonel. It is very much like not feeding the bears at the safari park. His bite is much worse than his bark.

Noted

Chivalry, it’s alive and well on this board. The majority here believes that you treat ladies with respect. They are our mothers, wives, daughters, friends, confidants, and better halves. This might not be strictly PC in some circles but it is the way it is.

I believe you should treat all with respect I’m not asking for special treatment because I’m a woman

Read more than you post. A lot more. Especially when you're starting out, it helps to just observe for a while, get to know different member's styles. This can prevent a lot of misunderstanding and embarrassment. Also, much of the time, if you wait a bit before posting, you'll either discover that someone else says the same thing, only much more eloquently, or you'll realize that what you wanted to say is just dumb.

Guess I messed this part up as well, truth is I don’t have a lot of time to spend on here and if I spend too much reading I won’t ever get to a reasonable number of posts so I can at least edit my posts… something I am currently unable to do.

We had a system crash about 18 months ago and almost lost the site. The hosting company got us back up after a while and we lost some functionality...to include the emoticons and Like button.

Since we are basically supported at no charge we are not high on anyone's priority lists to get upgraded.

Also when you are new you'll see some delays as we mods check to ensure you aren't a bot or someone really don't need.

You should be able to post but just not open a thread until you hit 25 posts.

We have had some double posts (another "undocumented feature" of our crash. Just let me know where it is and I can go clean it up. Use the Notification button at the top, open Inbox and send me or one of the other Mods for help.

Look for Top Hatter, Astralis and Yours truly...anyone with green or gold font on their avatar can help.

“Loyalty to country ALWAYS. Loyalty to government, when it deserves it.”
Mark Twain